Ok, Grumpy has awakened from his nap -- the topic of deciding what to do with your collection when you die was just too hot to resist. So here goes...
To begin, I believe that shots taken today are essentially worthless. Note my wording, worthless, meaning of no monetary value, as opposed to useless. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of people out there taking train pictures these days. The efforts of any single individual are irrelevant -- if you don't get a shot of this train, somebody else will. Contrast this to the situation 50 years ago. At that time, there were only a handful of people producing quality images of railroading. This was for many reasons, not the least of which was the relative expense of equipment and film. Furthermore, in those days people actually had to work, instead of devoting their entire lives to lesiure time activities. Obviously, there were far fewer images of railroads made during that era than are made today. Supply and demand determines the value of most commodities, rail photos included. Good color slides taken in 1947 will cost you quite a bit. Good color slides taken in 1997 are scarcely worth the price of the film. This raises an interesting side story which we will now temporarily digress to. A friend of mine (speak up if you wish) laments the fact that fan magazines don't pay worth a damn. Why? Supply and demand. Sure, you get into a field which isn't hobby oriented, you can probably make decent money selling shots to magazines; but with railfan mags, nickels and dimes are the rule. Why would a magazine want to pay $300 for your photo when they have 10 other guys willing to give them the same shot for free just to see their name in print? Anyone who thinks they're making good money by taking train pictures is suffering from delusions (with VERY few exceptions). Anyway, back to our main topic. Do you not agree that modern era train pictures essentially have no monetary value? Ok then, what about 50 years from now? Well, there ARE a hell of a lot of fans, and a lot of them seem to think they are serving some higher cause by preserving some precious piece of history that would be lost were it not for their noble efforts (more delusions). Seems like I just read a good editorial about that somewhere -- anybody? Anyway, that being the case, a lot of these guys are going to hang onto those slides like they were gold. Call me a moron, but I'd bet that in 50 years, train pictures from 1997 will be nearly as plentiful (and as worthless) as they are today. Besides, all us Fujichrome shooters will only have empty mounts by then anyway, right? ;) Another thing to consider, is that 50 years ago, there were actually more than 2 railroads, unlike today (sorry, I'm a westerner). Do you really think there will EVER be a demand for grungy green BN cinder block SD40-2 slides? What about UP? EVERYTHING will eventually end up yellow and gray, so what value are UP slides? I guess what I'm saying here is that in 50 years, my money says there will only be one railroad, and we all know who that will be. But I digress... Ok, if that didn't get your attention, maybe this will. You ever wonder what some of the deceased fans of yesteryear might think if they found out how much money some of their slides were selling for? Who does that money benefit -- their descendents? I think not. Now, I ordinarily don't have a problem with a guy making a buck however he can, but this is sort of personal here. I, for one, am not the least bit enthralled with the idea of some huckster peddling my slides 50 years from now (not that anyone would want them anyway, but we're speaking hypothetically here). How do his actions benefit me, my family, or my causes? I CAN tell you this, I sure as hell am NOT out there shooting slides today for the benefit of this hypothetical profiteer. Now I realize that I have rather radical ideas (or hadn't you noticed?), and that not eveyone feels as I do. But suppose for a moment that this IS an issue for you. What options do you have? I suppose one idea is to donate your collection to a state historical society. I like this idea, because in theory, it makes your work a public resource. So at least IF there is any historical significance to your work (highly doubtful), then it is available to all for free. I believe some rather notable fans of yesteryear took this route (e.g. Otto Perry). Of course, assuming you are survived by family, then perhaps you would like them to profit by selling your collection, but the real money is probably NOT going to come from a bulk sale like this. The REAL money is made when the dealer sells individual slides at a hefty markup. Before I continue, I DO know there are some dealers on this list, and I am NOT trying to insult you here, so please forgive me if I have. One of the wildest ideas, and one that is perhaps NOT without merit, is to take the approach that was taken with many Ansel Adams negatives -- destroy them! This was done for financial reasons, to increase the value of the prints, knowing full well that no more could ever be made once the negs were destroyed. Somehow, I DON'T think that would work with train pictures. After all, I just said I expected the slides to be essentially worthless anyway. Destroying something that is worthless probably doesn't increase its value. Interestingly, some of my friends are well on their way to implementing this last idea, even if unintentionally. Let's listen: "Slide sorting system? ... ummm, I don't have one; I just throw everything in a pile on my desk ... keeps the cockroaches entertained." One final thought. Seems to me its always easier to buy stuff than it is to sell it. An item's value is NOT determined by how much YOU pay for it; it is determined by how much you SELL it for. Good enough reason never to buy anything ever again if you ask me. Well, that's about a pipe-load for now. Simmer that bitter flavor! More thought provoking rubbish from your old pal Grumpy. Hey, anyone out there got the guts to write an HONEST book review? Comments? Criticisms? I'm going back to sleep now.... zzzzzzzzzz Jim Gilley [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.eesoft.com/rr --> SPORRS: Serious Photographers of Railroad Related Subjects X-Mozilla-Status: 0011 Content-Length: 2690
